Apparatus for making separable bottom stops for slide fasteners



May 22, 1962 v E. LEVINE 3,035,541

APPARATUS FOR MAKING SEPARABLE BOTTOM STOPS FOR SLIDE FASTENERS Original Filed April 29, 1957 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 ill! JINVENTOR. [44/07 kWh flit AL Y at May 22, 1962 E. LEVINE APPARATUS FOR MAKING SEPARABLE BOTTOM STOPS FOR SLI TENERS Original Filed April 29, 1957 DE FAS 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I "Ilm.

o IHW W HI m SI :3 I wn. ""0 58 L mama 'IIIYIIIIIIIII k\\\\ INVENTOR. [24/07 Ail/0Y6 United States Patent fifice 3,035,541 Patented May 22, 1962 3,035,541 APPARATUS FOR MAKlN G SEPARABLE BOTTOM STOPS FGR SLIDE FASTENERS Elliot Levine, Brooklyn, N.Y. American Eyelet Qompany Inc., 233 Spring St, New York 13, N.Y.) Original application Apr. 29, 1957, Ser. No. 655,883, new Patent No. 2,949,211, dated Aug. 16, 1960. Divided and this application Oct. 26, 1959, Ser. No. 848,674

7 Claims. (Cl. 118211) This invention relates to an apparatus for making bottom stops for separable slide fasteners. More particularly, the invention pertains to a machine for preparing stringers for reception of bottom stop pins. The term pins as used in this art denotes both the so-called male pin which is adapted to be detachably coupled with a socket and the so-called female pin which is adapted to support the socket.

It is an object of the present invention to provide an apparatus of the character described which will simplify and render less expensive the manufacture of separable bottom stops for slide fasteners.

It is another object of the invention to provide an apparatus of the character described which are considerably less complex and therefore easier to operate and practice than the machines and processes heretofore employed for the same purpose whereby less skilled labor can be employed.

It is another object of the invention to provide an apparatus of the character described, which automate one of the steps in the manufacture of stops of the type here under consideration.

Other objects of the invention in part will be obvious and in part will be pointed out hereinafter.

The invention, accordingly, consists in the features of construction, combinations of elements, arrangements of parts and series of steps which will be exemplified in the machine hereinafter described and of which the scope of application will be indicated in the appended claims.

In the accompanying drawings, in which is shown one of the various possible embodiments of the invention,

FIG. 1 is a top view of the machine embodying the present invention for applying a cementitious substance as a stripe extending transversely across a pair of coupled stringers;

FIG. 2 is a front view of the machine shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a side view of said machine;

FIG. 4 is an enlarged sectional view taken substantially along the line 44 of FIG. 2, the same illustrating the cementing and doctor drums and the applicator pressure P FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 55 of FIG. 4 and showing the machine as it appears prior to the application of cement to the stringer tapes.

FIG. 6 is a view similar to FIG. 5, but showing the macm'ne during application of the cement stripe;

FIG. 7 is a sectional view taken substantially along the line 77 of FIG. 4; and

FIGS. 8 and 9 are plan views of a pair of coupled stringers before and after, respectively, the application of the lateral cement stripe.

In general the present invention deals with the reatment of coupled slide fastener stringers in the form in which they usually are fabricated in gap type chain machines, this constituting long strips of separate consecutive pairs of coupled stringers. More particularly, I provide a machine which applies a stripe of cement across the ends of successive pairs of coupled stringers while the stringers still are connected to one another in the form of long strips.

Referring now in detail to the drawings, the reference numeral 30 denotes the machine for cementitiously transversely striping long strips of coupled stringers at specific locations in the gaps thereof. As is well known, a conventional gap type chain machine will form a very long strip consisting of a tape having closely spaced slide fastener elements secured to a beaded edge thereof in groups which are spaced apart by gaps. It is usual to couple matched groups of slide fastener elements of two such long strips of stringers and to suitably arrange the coupled long strips in such a fashion as to form a source of supply of connected coupled stringers. These tapes may, for example, be arranged in a roll or laid in regular fashion in a large container.

The reference numeral 32 denotes a pair of long strips such as described above, the same including a pair of long tapes 34, 36 each having a beaded edge 38 on which one or a pair of cords are suitably secured, as by stitching.

Groups of slide fastener elements 46" are clinched on the beaded edges of the strips and matched groups on the two tapes are coupled as shown, for example, in FIG. 8. Each strip consists of a very large number of such groups. Successive groups of coupled slide fastener elements are separated from one another by gaps 42 on which no elements are secured to the tapes.

Prior to treatment by the machine 30 the coupled stringers have had a portion of the cords removed from their beaded edges in the gaps 42. Said gaps 42 constitute in part one end of one pair of coupled stringers and in part the opposite end of the adjacent pair of coupled stringers.

More particularly referring to FIG. 8, in which the arrow A indicates the direction in which the stringers are fed into the machine 39, the gap 42 may be considered to consist of three sections. These include a section 44 which constitutes the top end of a pair of coupled stringers adapted to be connected at their other end by a separable bottom stop, a section 46 and a section 48. The sections 46 and 48 jointly constitute that end of a pair of coupled stringers which is adapted to receive, after suitable treatment, a separable bottom stop. The section 48 is immediately adjacent the groups of slide fastener elements on the stringers While the section 46 is more remote therefrom. The section 46 is designed to be folded back over the section 48 and to this end, in order to prevent undue thickening of the beaded edges, it is desirable for the cords to be removed from said section 46. This cord removing operation is performed before the coupled stringers are fed into the machine 30.

The function of the machine 30 is to apply transversely across the coupled stringers a wide stripe 50 (see FIG. 9) of cementitious material, preferably of the pressure sensitive type as, for example, rubber cement, the same consisting of natural latex in an organic volatile solvent and optionally including a tackifying agent. The stripe extends across the width of the coupled stringers from one lateral edge to the other thereof with one side of the stripe at the end of the section 46 remote from its groups of coupled slide fastener elements and the other side of the stripe in section 48 whereby when the section 44 later is separated from the section 46 and the section 46 folded over on to the section 48 these latter two sections will adhere to one another.

The machine Sill constitutes a base 52 which desirably is mounted on the top of a table or workbench. Bearings 54 secured to the base rotatably journal a shaft 56 which carries a cementing drum 53. The drum end of the shaft overhangs a cement reservoir 60 in which there is contained a supply of liquid cement 62 such as, for instance, rubber cement. The drum has a lower portion thereof submerged in the supply of cement whereby when the drum is turned it will carry a film of cement up on its periphery.

A shaft 64 parallel to the shaft 56 is journaled in bearings 66, 68 alongside the bearings 54. Said shaft 64 carries a pair of clutch halves 70, 72. The driving half 72 is free to rotate on the shaft 64. A sheave 74 is connected to the driving half 72 and has trained about it a belt 76 that engages a pulley 78 mounted on the output shaft 80 of an electric motor 82 that is secured on the table top whereby the driving half of the clutch constantly rotates.

The driven half 70 of the clutch is axially slidable on a splined section of the shaft 64 and is urged by a spring 84 into engagement with the driving half 72 whereby as long as the motor 82 is energized and the machine is not manipulated the shaft 64 will be continuously turned.

Power is transmitted from the shaft 64 to the shaft 56 by a pair of meshing gears 86, 88 fast on the shafts 64, 56 respectively. Desirably, the two gears are of substantially the same diameter and have the same number of teeth so that these two shafts will rotate at the same angular rate of speed.

The shaft 64 includes a portion 90 which overhangsthe cement reservoir 60. This portion carries a doctor drum 92, which turns with the shaft 64 and is located immediately adjacent the cementing drum 58 with their axes of rotation at the same horizontal level. The space between the two drums is closely controlled and is regulated so that the film of liquid cement carried up from the reservoir by the cementing drum and past the doctor drum is of the proper thickness to apply the desired amount of liquid cement in the area of the stripe 56 to a pair of coupled stringers.

The doctor blade is provided with flanges 94 (see particularly FIG. 7) which rub against the opposite fiat faces of the cementing drum so as to wipe clean the sides of the drum and thereby prevent the application of too great an amount of cement at the sides of the stripe 50.

It will be observed that the shaft 56 turns the cementing drum in the direction of the arrow B so as to raise a peripheral film of cement above the level of the cement in the reservoir and so that the doctor blade is turned by its shaft 90 in the direction of the arrow C. But since the two shafts 56, 90 turn at the same angular rate of speed and since the cementing drum is considerably larger than the doctor drum, the periphery of the cementing drum will move faster than that of the doctor drum, sweeping past the doctor drum and leaving the excess of cement on the doctor drum so as to reduce the thickness of the film of cement to the desired amount.

Inasmuch as the clutch normally is coupled, the foregoing action will be carried on continuously so that fresh liquid cement always is present as a uniform thin film on the top of the cementing drum ready to be applied, as needed, to a pair of coupled stringers.

During the actual application of cement to a pair of coupled tapes the cementing drum must be stationary, and for this purpose there is provided suitable means to interrupt the drive of the shaft 56, as by opening the clutch above described. More particularly, the driven half 70 of the clutch is formed with an annular track 96 in which a pin 98 is located. The pin is carried at one end of a lever 100 vertically pivoted to turn about an upstanding shaft 102 erect on the base 52. The other end of the lever 100 has secured thereto a cam face 104 in the shape of a vertically inclined flat surface on which a roller follower 106 rides. Said follower is journalled at one end of a rocking bar 108 fulcrumed to turn about a horizontal pin 110. The bar is pivotally joined as at 112 (see FIG. 3) at the end thereof opposite the follower 106 to a vertical link 114, the upper end of which terminates in a yoke 116 swivelled on a ball 118 extending laterally from a walking beam 120. Said beam is pivoted for horizontal rotation on a pin 122 mounted between a pair of uprights 124 carried by an arm 126 extending forwardly and upwardly extending from the base 52.

The rear end of the beam is actuated through a link 128 from a foot treadle (not shown) through a reversing lever of the usual type so that when an operator steps on said treadle the link 128 will rise and the rear end of the beam 124 accordingly will be elevated. This will lift the link 114 and raise the adjacent end of the bar 108 thereby depressing the follower 106 and oscillating the lever 109 about its fulcrum shaft 102 in a clockwise direction, indicated by the arrow D, as viewed in FIG. 1. Thereby, the pin 98 'will shift the driven half 70 of the clutch away from the driving half 72 to uncouple the clutch and take power off the cementing drum 58. Due to the friction between the meshing gears 86, 88 and the friction of the shafts 64, 56 in their bearings said drum will quickly stop.

At its forward end the arm 126 is provided with a pair of vertical gibs 13!} between which a ram 132 is mounted for vertical reciprocation being held in the slot of which the gibs define the side walls by face plate 134. The upper end of the ram is connected through a link 136 to the forward end of the beam 120 so that when the foot treadle is depressed the ram will be driven downwardly.

The ram is lined up directly over the cementing drum (see FIG. 2) and its lower end is concavely contoured to match the curvature of the periphery of said drum (see FIG. 4). Accordingly when the ram is lowered by depression of the foot treadle the bottom end of the ram ultimately will come to rest on the top of the cementing drum.

A feed plate 138 is provided at the end of a bracket 140 mounted on the arm 126. The top of the feed plate is horizontal and is slightly above the level of the top of the cementing drum (see FIG. 2). Said feed plate provides a wide surface for support of the long tapes 34, 36. The upper surface of the feed plate is provided with a slot 142 (see FIG. 1) perpendicular to the cementing drum and in line with the axis of rotation thereof. Said slot is included to accommodate the beaded edges 38 of said tapes and the slide fastener elements secured thereon, thereby allowing the tapes to lie flat on the feed plate while the elements slide along the bottom of the slot (see FIG. 5).

In addition to the feed plate 138' there further is provided for the support of the long coupled strips an elongated horizontal take-oif plate 144 supported by pedestals 146 from the base 52. The take-ofi plate likewise includes a long slot 148 slidably to pass the coupled slide fastener elements. It thus will be seen that when the long strips are supported on the two plates the tapes will cross over the top of the cementing drum (see FIG. 2).

To use the machine 30, an operator lays the coupled strips across the two plates in the position indicated in FIG. 2 and places the zones 46, 48 directly above the cementing drum so that the stripe 50 ultimately will be located thereon in the correct position. To ensure exact orientation of the tapes in the foregoing position the machine further includes a locating pin 150 carried by the feed plate 138 and extending vertically a short distance in front of the same as clearly indicated, for instance, in FIG. 5. The locating pin is disposed along the line of the slots 142, 148 so that it will lie between a pair of tapes carried by the two plates. The pin is so placed that when it is butted against by the endmost slide fastener element of a pair of coupled groups of such elements the area on which cement is to be imprinted will lie directly between the ram 132 and the cementing drum 58.

After the operator has thus arranged the pair of long strips he steps on the foot treadle. The first consequence of this action is to disengage the clutch halves 70, 72 and stop the cementing drum. Further depression of the treadle presses the pair of tapes between the cementing drum and the lower end of the ram as indicated in FIG. 6 thereby depositing liquid cement in the desired area. To accommodate the beaded edges of the tape during the cementing operation the lower end of the ram is formed with a clearance slot 152.

It will be appreciated that by continuously driving the cementing drum, except at the moment of application of cement as a band across the coupled strips, a fresh film of cement always is provided at the top of the cementing drum continuously ready for application to the strips.

The present application is a division of my copending application Serial No. 655,883 for Method and System for Making Separable Bottom Stops for Slide Fasteners, filed April 29, 1957, and now U.S. Patent No. 2,949,211, issued Aug. 16, 1960.

From the foregoing it will be appreciated that I have provided a machine which achieves the various objects of the invention and are well adapted to meet the conditions of practical use.

As various possible embodiments might be made of the instant invention and as various changes might be made in the embodiment above set forth, it is to be understood that all matter herein described or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, doctor means for limiting to a predetermined thickness the film of adhesive at the top of the drum, means for selectively interrupting rotation of the drum, support means for holding long strips of coupled stringers with the space between a pair of adjacent coupled stringers immediately above the top of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means operative concurrently with the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press against the periphery of the drum the coupled stringers overlying the drum whereby to deposit liquid adhesive on the undersurface of said stringers.

2. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, means for selectively interrupting rotation of the drum, support means for holding long strips of coupled stringers with the space between a pair of adjacent coupled stringers immediately above the top of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means operative concurrently with the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press against the periphery of the drum the coupled stringers overlying the drum whereby to deposit liquid adhesive on the undersurface of said stringers.

3. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive,

means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, means for selectively interrupting rotation of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means operative concurrently with the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press against the periphery of the drum the coupled stringers overlying the drum whereby to deposit liquid adhesive on the undersurface of said stringers.

4. In a machine for applying adhesive, that improve ment comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, doctor means for limiting to a predetermined thickness the film of'adhesive at the top of the drum, means for selectively interrupting rotation of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means operative concurrently with the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum.

5. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, doctor drum means for limiting to a predetermined thickness the film of adhesive at the top of the drum and for removing adhesive from the sides of the drum, means for selectively interrupting rotation of the drum, support means for holding long strips of coupled stringers with the space between a pair of adjacent coupled stringers immediately above the top of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means operative concurrently with the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press against the periphery of the drum the coupled stringers overlying the drum whereby to deposit liquid adhesive on the undersurface of said stringers.

6. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, doctor means for limiting to a predetermined thickness the film of adhesive at the top of the drum, clutch means for selectively interrupting rotation of the dnrm, support means for holding long strips of coupled stringers with the space between a pair of adjacent coupled stringers immediately above the top of the drum, a ram located directly above the top of the drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means linked to the drum rotation interrupting means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press against the periphery of the drum the coupled stringers overlying the drum whereby to deposit liquid adhesive on the undersurface of said stringers.

7. In a machine for applying a stripe of adhesive 7 a transversely across long strips of spaced coupled stringers at specific locations intermediate the ends of said stringers, that improvement comprising the combination of: an open top reservoir for liquid adhesive, a cylindrical cementing drum mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis with a lower portion of the drum immersed in the adhesive and the top of the drum above the surface of the adhesive, means for rotating said drum whereby a film of adhesive is raised on the upper periphery of the drum as the drum turns, doctor drum means mounted to rotate about a horizontal axis in the same horizontal plane as the axis of rotation of the cementing drum, said doctor drum means being smaller than the cementing drum and being clear of the adhesive in the reservoir, said doctor drum means having flanges adjacent the sides of the cementing drum, gear means coupling said drums for simultaneous rotation with the doctor drum turning at a peripheral speed less than that of the cementing drum so as to limit to a predetermined peripheral thickness the film of adhesive at doctor drum and through the gear means the cementing drum, means to couple and uncouple the clutch means, a ram located directly above the top of the cementing drum, means guiding the ram for vertical movement toward and away from the top of the drum, and means linked to the clutch coupling and uncoupling means for moving the ram toward the drum so as to press the tapes of coupled stringers against the periphery of the drum when the 10 latter is stopped.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 15 2,110,938 Nutt Mar. 15, 1938 2,297,015 Osgood Sept. 29, 1942 2,694,648 Muench Nov. 16, 1954 2,785,652 Roberts et a1. Mar. 19, 1957 2,790,729 Pettit et al Apr. 30, 1957 

